KIEV, May 13. /ITAR-TASS/. The Kiev authorities should have held back on the “war against their own people” and refrained from talking "in terms of ultimatums and force" with the eastern region of Donbass, opposition presidential candidate Mykhailo Dobkin said on Tuesday.
There would have been no protest and no referendum then, the Party of Regions candidate said in a statement from the parliamentary faction.
“The new interim authorities are not authorities anymore, but a dictatorship,” the group said.
“If the new authorities had refrained from talking in terms of ultimatums with Donbass residents, insulting and humiliating people and using double standards, there would have been no referendum, no victims and no protest sentiments,” Dobkin was quoted as saying, noting that last Sunday’s referendum was "a public outcry" over the authorities’ actions against the population.
“This local civil war is really frightening since people are dying from weapons bought with Ukrainian taxpayers’ money, carried by Ukrainians and killing Ukrainians,” he said.
Dobkin demanded troop withdrawal from the Donbass region and the start of a large-scale dialogue.
“All participants in the process should join it, whether the authorities like them or not,” he said. “Everyone should have their say, and only then should we start seeking compromise solutions. I think we still have this possibility," the presidential candidate said.